The roads in my home town are dangerous. People are horrible and
don't know each other. And the police force is seriously
un-reliable so it's no skin of anyone's nose if some guy gets
knocked down everyone in a while. Crossing the road is virtually
suicidal; especially if you just run across without looking.
Luckily, the black car was able to slow down enough so, by the
time it reached me, it felt more like a soft bump than a
spine-cracking collision. None the less, the middle-aged guy
behind the wheel looked seriously pissed when he glared at me
though his cracked bifocals. I tried to make myself feel better
by telling myself that he was on his way to kill someone and that
I was on my way to saving someone's life. One of which were true.

I sprinted down the street, separating the crowds like they were
the red sea. It was mid-winter; people were trying to get home
and I was running past them wearing nothing but a Beatles top,
torn jeans, and some ill-fitting trainers. I got dressed in a
rush.

"Gotta get to the bridge! She hasn't got long left! Crap, Crap,
Crap, Crap, Crap! It's all my fault!"

I stepped on some ice as I turned on to Brahms Street. I slipped
and fell, twisting my wrist awkwardly; almost breaking it. I
didn't let this hinder me. I picked myself up straight away. I
was only a few blocks away. I could make it. I had to.

She was so close to the edge when I got there. I blurted her name
out as soon as I could react.

"KATE!" She didn't turn. I shouted again.

"KATE! GET AWAY FROM THE EDGE! YOU'LL SLIP!" This time she did
turn: Smiling.

"Sounds like a plan."

"Kate, please don't do this. You're making a big mistake. We can
talk about this. We ca-"I didn't get to finish my sentence before
she slapped me with her icy hand.

"I'm making a big mistake?" Her voiced wobbled. She was going to
cry. "You can talk! You were the one who made out with a god-damn
whore!" As you can imagine, this shocked me. Partly because she
would never accuse me of something like this; let alone go to an
extreme such as this. But mainly…

"I was drunk! I didn't know what I was doing! How the hell did
you find out anyway?"

"DON'T CHANGE THE SUBJECT!" A tear rolled down her grinning face.
"The point is you broke your promise. Together forever,
Remember?" I was crying now.

"Honey, please. I'm sorry for what I did. I wasn't thinking and
neither do you. Come home!" She stared into my eyes. She stared
into them as if we where young again. Then she said a single,
pure word.

"No."

She walked quickly back towards the edge. Her foot was halfway
off the bridge when I caught up with her. I grabbed her arm,
stopping her and said,

"I love you." She didn't seem to move for ages. She just stood
there in the moonlight and winter breeze. She eventually turned
towards me, got on her toes and kissed me lovingly. It came as a
bit of a shock, but I kissed her back. I was so thankful that she
changed her mind. I knew that our relationship wouldn't last
another few weeks. I knew that I was just about to kiss my
secretary before I heard she was about to jump. I knew that I'd
go back to work the next day and try to kiss her again. But right
now, the only thing that matters is that she won't do anything
that will reflect badly on me. I was so close to promotion. A
stunt like this was the last thing I needed. As I stood there, on
that bridge, for a second it seemed like everything was going to
be ok.

That was until I felt her weight shift. I felt my feet leave the
ground. I felt the wandering hands of the December air. And,
ultimately, I felt the freezing river below crush my lungs.